Sonny With No Chance?
by pearlchavez
Summary: When Chad falls for the seemingly perfect guest star of The Falls, will Sonny realise how much she likes him? Has she lost him for good? And is this new girl everything she seems?
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: Okay, so this is an idea I got while washing the dishes this morning, and I had to write it down. I plan to make it a small 3 part piece. So, let me know what you guys think. Merci. **

Sonny Munroe walked into her favourite restaurant. She was surprised she had even found the time that day, but eleven hours into shooting her latest movie, she realised that she was craving some chicken. She wouldn't tell her personal trainer that she had eaten something other than vegetables that day.

She sat down next to the window, looking out into Hollywood. She wondered how she'd ever managed to survive in Wisconsin. Los Angeles was her life now; the hustle and bustle in the city of the beautiful people was all she could be surrounded by now. Sonny couldn't imagine returning to the country, where everything was calm and it was likely her cell phone wouldn't even work. Her Mother told her it had taken her soul a long time ago, but she didn't believe it.

Ever since So Random finished a few years before, Sonny Munroe had kept herself busy. At first she was content with playing humourous characters in TV shows and movies, but soon she hungered to be taken a little more seriously. Yeah, she became interested in dramas, and roles that won others Oscars and Emmys. She didn't want to admit that she was curious to discover why Chad Dylan Cooper loved it so much. She soon realised it when she landed a role as the first lesbian student to challenge her school district when she wasn't allowed to bring her girlfriend to the prom. The intensity was addictive and the adoration around her when she won her first Oscar and Golden Globe was electrifying. So she began to act in those movies all the time. She would occasionally find herself in a recurring guest spot on a popular sitcom, but she preferred to be taken seriously. She was the star, and it was long hours.

Sonny was addicted to her work. She didn't like to sleep at night, and she didn't even like to have a spare moment to think. She liked to be kept busy. Her friends worried about her, and she had absolutely no chance of finding a significant other to worry about her.

Truthfully, Sonny didn't want to think, because she would have to be reminded of the mistakes she made when she was a teenager. Everyone made mistakes when they were younger; it was general protocol to admit that teenagers made plenty of mistakes. Everyone also insisted that things happened for a reason and that those mistakes were all a part of a big plan, but Sonny couldn't help thinking that she had gone off course one night.

****

She had been in the prop house after hours, watching something on TV. She and her Mother had been involved in yet another argument, and Sonny wasn't ready to apologize yet. She sat with her arms crossed, and a frown on her face, a little terrified of the dark shadows that surrounded her.

"Munroe?" She looked up to see Chad Dylan Cooper standing in the doorway, looking curiously at her, still wearing his Mackenzie Falls uniform. "It's almost one am."

"Hey, you can tell the time," she replied dryly, and he glared at her, shaking his head. "What are you doing up so late Cooper? Don't tell me you were working."

"The greatest actor of our generation never rests Sonny," he told her, sitting down next to her, his golden hair shining from the light reflecting off the TV. "But it is a burden I am willing to take on."

"I feel so terrible for you," she lied, rolling her eyes. She had to admit that he made her smile, which was annoying, because she was perfectly willing to stay mad. Chad always managed to make her smile, and most of the time it was because he was being so ridiculous. He seriously had no idea just how funny he was, and he was the one who thought she was so hilarious.

"Why are you here to late?" He asked her. "I don't think Chuckle City requires as much dedication as The Falls does."

"Who cares? Let's just watch TV," she replied. Oh, so she was still a little mad. Chad kept on looking at her, his deep eyes pushing for a reply. Sonny was perfectly willing to ignore it, but she couldn't resist for long. She didn't like people looking at her too long, and especially not him. When Chad looked at her, she blushed, and felt her whole body set alight. "I kinda had an argument with my Mom."

"Did she ban you from seeing me after you finally realised the inevitable truth? That you're in love with me?" He asked her, and before Sonny could burst out laughing, she saw that he was deadly serious. She waited for him to realize the stupidity of his sentence, but he didn't.

"Oh my God you're so…wrong!" She snapped. "Not everything is about you Cooper, and when you just said that, I felt myself want to throw up just a little bit."

"Whoa! Okay!" He replied, putting both his hands up. "I've never saw you so riled up. I have to say Sonny; sometimes it's nice to see a little intensity and anger in someone. Why are you guys fighting?"

"You're seriously asking me a question that doesn't involve you?" She gasped, and she had to pinch herself. When she felt Chad playfully slap her hand, she wondered why her heart began pounding. Sonny had been forced to admit that she had a little crush on Chad months ago, but it was nothing more. It couldn't be anything more. So why did she want his soft lips to touch her just for a minute? Why did she feel so self conscious when he was looking at her? "She doesn't like me working so hard. She thinks that I don't have time to be a normal teenager, but it's something I can't help, right? I stopped being a normal teenager when they put my face on a lunchbox to make money."

"That's quite an eloquent way to put it," he smirked. "Well Sonny, I too gave up my childhood for the fame. Yes, even the greatest actor of our generation was once a normal boy who played in the sand and dirt, until he was picked out of the crowd-"

"Is there a nice piece of advice coming after your life story?" She asked him, and she had to fight the smile that was ready to erupt onto her face. Chad frowned, and sighed in defeat. Sonny was the only girl who stopped him thinking of himself.

"You find a balance," he shrugged his shoulders. "It's not easy being a normal teenager when you're us. You find time for your friends and everything else in your life. That's all you can do. Your Mom's just worrying about you, and that's weird to me. My Mom doesn't even think of that kind of thing."

Sonny was worried when she couldn't look away from his eyes. Why was it that Chad was always there? He was there when she needed him, and when she didn't need him. Was there a point? Was he supposed to be there? Was there a reason that he always appeared? Everyone she knew believed in fate, and just at that moment, Sonny was forced to confront the possibility that maybe the arrogant blonde boy next to her was supposed to be more than just a random friend for the night. Maybe Chad Dylan Cooper was supposed to mean more to her. Maybe that was why her heart was racing and she was sweating.

"You're looking at me funny," he smirked, wiping away a stray strand of his hair away, showing off his sparkly eyes. "Not that I mind, because as you know, I always have girls-"

"Shut up for just a minute," Sonny replied, and before he could speak, she leaned over and touched his lips with hers. She immediately expected to be pushed away, or to receive no communication from him. But Chad responded almost as quickly as she'd kissed him. At first their hands remained by their sides, but after a few seconds, Chad's were around her hips, and hers were around his neck. Their bodies remained sitting for only a few seconds, before they surrendered and lay down, Chad on top of Sonny. It was perfect, and everything around them just disappeared for a few seconds. That was until Chad's lips pulled away from hers and they both sat up straight.

"Well, that wasn't what I was expecting," he told her, blushing and looking away from her. Sonny was embarrassed; she never behaved like that, and the moment she did, she had been rejected. "Umm, can I ask why you just did that?"

"I wanted to," she replied. She had no other reason; it wasn't a joke, and she wasn't trying to shut him up or anything…fine, she was trying to shut him up a little, but mostly it was because she wanted to. She didn't realize it until that moment, but she had always wanted to.

"You wanted to kiss me?" He asked her, eventually looking into her eyes again. Sonny nodded, trying not to allow herself to cry, but she wanted to crawl into a hole and die.

"Hey, don't worry about it Cooper, it's not like I expected you to want to kiss me back," she replied, laughing it off as best she could. "It's not like you want to kiss anyone other than yourself, and –"

"Shut up, for a minute, would you?" He asked her, and then he kissed her again. Sonny immediately threw her arms around him again and they retired to their former positions, where they remained most of the night.

****

It was something that Sonny hadn't meant to happen. She had been feeling confident, and she thought that she'd throw caution to the wind for just one night. She sat in the restaurant dwelling on that night, her lips curling into a smile when she thought of him. His arms felt right around her, and it felt like his lips belonged to hers.

"Thank you," Sonny's thoughts were suddenly disturbed by the voice that had kept her alive and wanting to block out her thoughts for years. She turned around to see Evie Handler sitting across from her, with Chad Dylan Cooper. It was a sight she thought she would only ever see in her nightmares. She had imagined pulling out her long blonde locks for years, and gouging out the ocean blue eyes that had stolen Chad's heart. Oh how she wished sometimes that she was that bitch in The Little Mermaid, just so she could steal Evie's voice. She wanted to strip the woman of everything, just to escape the total misery she felt whenever she saw a picture of the woman with Chad.

"You don't thank the waiter for seating us," Chad rolled his eyes, smirking a little at his wife. "We're the ones who are going to be paying good money for the service."

"Well I thank them," she told him, squeezing his hand. Funny, it was almost like she was squeezing Sonny's heart. "They're going to have to put up with your particular orders, so they deserve all my thanks."

"I like things a particular way Evie, and I don't think it's too much to ask that the greatest actor-"

"Oh please, you know that shit doesn't roll with me," she laughed, and just when Sonny expected Chad Dylan Cooper to glare and make a point about why he deserved to be a real jerk, he didn't say anything. Evie smiled, and he just took her hand softly, and kissed it. "Aw man, I really broke you, didn't I?"

"I let you have your victories sometimes," he told her, smirking. "There's no way this pretty face could deal with a divorce, so I'm doing that thing, you know, where you swallow your pride? Oh, what is it?"

"Compromise?" She asked him, giggling. Chad nodded his head and kissed her on the forehead, before turning his head for just a second.

And that was when they laid eyes on each other.

****

Sonny Monroe woke up the next morning panicking. She had kissed Chad Dylan Cooper. She had kissed Chad Dylan Cooper all night, until she was forced to go home when her Mom called.

Everything seemed so much darker in the light. In the shadows, they could kiss without looking at the facts. The truth was that Chad and Sonny were supposed to hate each other. Their rivalry was something that kept the popularity of their shows at an all time high. The magazines could never exhaust the latest feud between So Random's sweetheart and Mackenzie Falls' heartthrob. They couldn't like each other. It wouldn't have the same effect and her cast mates would never forgive her.

She couldn't deny that she wanted to kiss him again though. Everything had changed, even though she convinced herself that it didn't have to. Just because they kissed didn't mean that they had to give up everything. They could still hate each other. Who said that a kiss had to be emotional? They could just kiss sometimes and seriously hate each other. Oh God, why did she do it? He was her worst enemy, and there was no way that he would ever bring her any happiness. He only thought of himself. There was no way that he would be able to think of anyone other than himself.

Sonny hoped that she would be able to be left alone for just a little while so that she could think about what she was going to do. She didn't even want to go into her dressing room, because surprisingly, Tawni Hart was unbelievably good at realizing when someone had a dirty little secret. She would force it out of her, and then Sonny would be forced to endure the lecture that followed. She couldn't fall for Chad, not when she had their show to think about.

Unfortunately for Sonny, Chad was waiting outside of Condor Studios, with his shades on, and a huge cup of coffee, much like herself. They had kissed for a large portion of the night and had forgotten that life was going to have to resume just a few hours later. This was when Sonny wished that they were normal teenagers; when her feelings could decide what she truly wanted, and not knowing what was best for their careers.

"So, we kissed last night," Chad told her, biting his lip nervously. They both took off their sunglasses and looked at each other, trying to find the answer in the other's eyes, but they were both hiding from the truth.

"I know," she replied. "I don't know what to say Chad."

"I do," he nodded. "Look, I know that you might not think that you're good enough to date CDC, but I could really see myself you know, maybe going out with you. I think we would be a very good looking couple."

"You do?" She asked him. Was she even awake? Was Chad really saying all this? Did he like her? She couldn't believe it. She didn't think he would want to. This complicated things.

"Look, I realised something last night," he told her. "It wasn't by accident. You didn't just want to kiss me, and I didn't just want to kiss you. As much as we both hate to admit it, we actually want each other a lot. I like you, and I think that you like me too. As much as you make me so mad sometimes, I think that's perfect for us. You won't let me be such an ass, and I'm going to be the guy who helps you realize just how…not so bad you are. This is something that we can both make work. We love and hate each other Munroe. When I thought about it, I didn't realize just how perfect you are for me. We'd be crazy to let this pass by us."

"You like me?" She asked him, and she was amazed at just how shocking the sentiment was. She had always suspected that it was only her who felt attracted to him. She had no idea that the feelings were returned; if she was honest, she thought that his kiss was just to boost his own ego. She didn't actually think that it meant anything. She didn't think that she was going to have to say what she did. She didn't think that she would ever have to say this.

"I like you," he confirmed, nodding his head. "Trust me, it made me feel a little sick too, but even CDC has to meet the girl of his dreams, right? You do weird things to me, you make me want to be…nice! And I used to wonder why you of all people had such an effect on me-"

"I don't like you."

She said it so quickly that it hurt a little bit. It was like poison and she had to spit it out. She felt like she was a deer in headlights, and she reacted the only way she could think to react. She watched Chad Dylan Cooper's face turn into a confused frown. He thought that she liked him. She thought that she liked him, but then she thought of the reaction from their peers. He wasn't thinking straight; he never did. All he was thinking about was the wonderful romance that could blossom between the two of them. He wasn't thinking of the reality, and the reality was that they could never make it work.

"You don't like me?"

"No."

****

"Sonny Munroe, it's been a while," Chad said to her, his wife turning to look at her. It was one thing when Chad's eyes burned into hers, but she felt something ache inside of her when his wife looked. It took a lot of her strength to look at them both. "How are you? I'm so surprised to see you!"

"Wow, you too," she replied, presenting them both with a superficial smile. She looked at Evie, who smiled at her, taking her husband's hand. Sonny hated to admit that Chad didn't look at her the way he used to any longer. He looked at her the way he would look at a friend. "I'm fine. Just acting away and stuff. What about you? I heard the both of you just celebrated your fifth wedding anniversary."

"Yeah, it was really wonderful," Evie smiled, Chad looking into her eyes. It was a sight she didn't want to see; her former love looking at his wife and blushing when she gazed at him. She'd never seen Chad so happy with anyone, and it killed her that it wasn't her. And it was all her fault. "I saw you in that movie, the one about the lesbian, and you seriously deserved the award."

"Thank you so much Evie," she replied, nodding despite the fact that she hated the woman with a passion. "What about you Chad? You've made some pretty awesome movies yourself."

"Yeah, but Evie and I want to take a little break from our jobs," he smiled, putting his arm around his wife. They had met a week after Sonny rejected him. Evie was guest starring on Mackenzie Falls, and it was almost like they fell in love at first sight. Chad didn't act on it immediately, but his eyes lit up whenever she was in the room, and he could barely muster the courage to ask her anything. Evie Handler seemed to be his perfect woman; she was beautiful, modest and she was a drama queen. It was almost as if she was made specifically for him. "Evie's pregnant."

****

"It's too late for us now, isn't it?" Sonny asked Chad. She had wanted to say it to him for months. They were standing outside of Condor Studios, after a party was thrown to mark the end of both shows. It had been two years since Sonny and Chad had shared their first kisses inside. It had been two years since he had met and loved Evie. It had been two years since Sonny realized that she loved him too.

"What do you mean?" He asked her, as they both looked up at the clear night sky. It was a beautiful sight. So was he, and she would never know it.

"Chad, I didn't want to be with you before, because I thought people wouldn't want it," she confessed, sighing. "I didn't realize just how much I actually cared about you. The thing is, I do now, and I know that it's too late. I just couldn't leave without you knowing."

Chad sighed, like she had told him something devastating. It had been riding around in her sub consciousness for years, and she feared that she would never be able to say it. She had wanted to tell him for so long, and the weight was finally lifted off her shoulders. She had spent years watching him fall for Evie Handler. She hated to admit that she hoped that he secretly loved her. She didn't want to think that it was too late; she wanted him to deny that it was too late.

"I'm going to propose to Evie tonight," he said, looking away from her. "I love her. I'm sorry."

****

"OH GOD!" Sonny Munroe sat up straight in her bed. She looked around her, surprised that she couldn't hear the loud voices and fumbling of plates and glasses. She was in her bedroom in the apartment she shared with her Mother, and Evie and Chad were nowhere to be seen.

It was a dream.

Sonny was still a seventeen year old girl and she still lived with her Mother. She hadn't left So Random just yet, and she wasn't winning Oscars just yet. It had all felt so real. Everything felt so real, and she could have sworn that she wasn't dreaming. Evie looked so real, but Sonny couldn't recall meeting anyone like her in the past. Her golden hair and blue eyes jumped out at her when she looked in the mirror.

It all seemed so familiar though.

And that was when Sonny realized that she had kissed Chad Dylan Cooper the night before. She was wearing the same clothes. His lips felt too real to be a dream, and the guilt and shock she felt was too real. The dream may have been vivid, but she knew that kissing him was real. Her Mother lectured her on being home so late, and she saw a text message from him, the same one that she had ignored in her dream.

What did the dream mean?

It was only a dream. It was only her imagination working into overdrive. She couldn't possibly take any of it seriously, because the same problems still followed; what would happen if she and Chad ended up together?

She was scared. That was the truth of it. Sonny Munroe was a big fan of comfort, and she had made herself quite comfortable for the past few months. She had grown used to hating him and admiring him from afar. She had grown used to mocking him with her friends. She didn't know if she wanted that to change. The thought of change made her terrified, but the thought of not changing made her heart ache.

Sonny felt a chill spread through her spine when Chad was waiting for her outside of Condor Studios, in the same clothes that he had been wearing in her dream. Okay, something was seriously wrong here. How could she have guessed that? She wasn't psychic. Well, her grandma had told her once that she could predict things, but that was only because she predicted a movie that would be on one time.

"Hey," he said. Okay, so the dialogue was a little different. That made her feel a little better, but the feelings when she looked into his eyes were no different.

"Hi," she replied nervously. "I was going to talk to you a little later, but here you are."

"Yeah, I work here too, so I thought we should maybe talk now," he told her, his coffee trembling a little. "We kissed last night Munroe, and well-"

"I don't know what to say Chad," she replied, and again she didn't know what to say. She knew that she'd gained practice, but words still failed her. She had been here before, but everything seemed so much more different in reality. She was still confused.

"Look, I realized something last night," he told her. "It wasn't by accident. You didn't just want to kiss me, and I didn't just want to kiss you. As much as we both hate to admit it, we actually want each other a lot. I like you, and I think that you like me too. As much as you make me so mad sometimes, I think that's perfect for us. You won't let me be such an ass, and I'm going to be the guy who helps you realize just how…not so bad you are. This is something that we can both make work. We love and hate each other Munroe. When I thought about it, I didn't realize just how perfect you are for me. We'd be crazy to let this pass by us."

"No," she shook her head. She was unable to describe the shock that passed through her body. She looked at him in horror when she realized what he had said. She had heard it all before. He had said it all before. How could that be possible? How could she have predicted that? How could she have predicted all of this? "I can't Chad. I thought it was just a make out thing. You like me?"

"I thought you liked me too," he said, looking just as confused as she did. There was one thing that hadn't changed; the feeling she got when she looked into his eyes after rejecting him. "You don't like me?"

"I never thought of – I thought that we were just – I didn't think that you –" okay, she couldn't say anything without losing her voice.

"Hi there, I was wondering if you could help me, I'm a little lost," someone said softly, her voice sounding so familiar. Sonny didn't know what to say.

There she was. Evie Handler.


	2. Chapter 2

"Oh good God you're not a figment of my imagination, Sonny said out loud, before she could stop herself. It was eerie, the girl standing before her was a younger version of the woman who had ruined her life in the dream she'd had the night before. Evie Handler was real?

"Excuse me?" The girl asked, a small smile on her face, bringing out the dimples at the side of her lips. Sonny didn't even want to look at Chad. If his eyes lit up the moment this petite girl walked into his life, then Sonny was merely watching the future play out before her eyes.

"Yeah, what did you say?" Chad asked, looking at her strangely. Sonny was relieved to find that his cheeks remained the same colour they had been only minutes before, and his eyes were the normal amount of sparkly, not to mention he was staring at her with the same worried expression he normally did.

"Oh good God, you're not a figment of my imagination," Sonny replied, smiling nervously, brushing her hair away, "I've never seen such a pretty girl on the set of Condor Studios."

"That is so sweet," the girl smiled, brushing her blonde hair away, the blue in her eyes becoming more imminent. "My name's Evie Handler and I'm guest starring on The Falls."

"Please, let me handle this," Chad smiled, putting his arm around the girl. It brought back a chilling memory from Sonny's dream, and she felt like she was watching the wrong love story develop. She was still having trouble accepting that this girl even existed. Evie Handler existed, and she was going to end up being married to Chad Dylan Cooper.

It had to be coincidence. Surely Sonny had heard her name mentioned before on TV and had modified her dream with the girl in it. She wasn't going to become Chad's new girlfriend. God, her imagination could run wild with her. Yeah, Evie Handler was an actress, and Sonny had merely imagined an overused plotline to keep her subconscious entertained the night before.

"So, Sonny, gosh, I feel like I should hug you or something," she smiled, her gleaming teeth almost blinding her. "I just love your show, and don't tell anyone, but you did make it a whole lot better."

"Oh my God, another fan of Chuckle City," Chad sighed, rolling his eyes. Although it wasn't obvious to the naked eye, Sonny noticed that he was barely looking at her. She expected it though; it wasn't like Chad Dylan Cooper to publicize his emotions, especially when they involved him being rejected by a girl he deemed less worthy than him.

"Well Chad, it's just obvious that she has good taste, isn't it?" Sonny smirked, trying to relive some kind of normalcy, but she saw the awkwardness in his eyes, and she couldn't ignore her own pounding heart. But she had made the right decision, right? They weren't meant to be, and their relationship would only set them both up for disappointment. Chad always thought he knew what was best, but Sonny was convinced that she was the one who had thought this through.

"Can't we just say you both have awesome shows?" Evie asked. Sonny found it immensely difficult to like this girl; she was just so nice. The girl who had apparently ruined her life before was a nice person, but then again, that dream was only a mere coincidence after seeing Evie in a TV show or something, it wasn't real.

"She's a little like you Sonny," Chad said. "This is her first big break, and even on television."

"What?" Sonny asked, trying not to acknowledge the chill that was spreading through her body. Evie smiled, looking a little worried at her, wondering why on earth she was suddenly trembling.

"I've never actually acted on TV or anything," she replied. "This is my first big break."

So, Sonny hadn't ever heard of this girl in her life?

"Tawni I am freaking out!" Sonny immediately exclaimed when she burst into the prop house that morning, trying to block out the memory of what she had Chad did the night before. There was more to worry about; like the fact that she had practically created some girl named Evie Handler.

"So am I!" She snapped, and Sonny looked at the eyeliner path leading down into her nostril. "What have I told you Sonny? We talk in hushed tones in the mornings, because that's when I do my make-up!"

"Brace yourself partner," she warned her, pacing around the room. Her heart was racing, and she was beginning to sweat immensely. She'd been forced to make a hasty excuse before leaving Chad and Evie to enter the building themselves, because she was convinced that she was going to say something stupid and crazy.

"Are you okay?" Tawni asked worriedly, biting her lip. "Oh my God, are you having a nervous breakdown? Because I'm not very good with that. Wow, you look really crazy."

"That's because I'm either psychic or out of my mind!" She cried, taking a deep breath. "Did you know there's a new girl guest starring on The Falls this week?"

"Why would I know that?" She asked, rolling her eyes. "That show doesn't involve me at all."

"Well there is," she replied, and, wow, it was proving to be extremely difficult trying to tell Tawni why her hands were shaking. "And she's not famous. This girl is unknown…and I had a dream about her last night."

"You had a dream about a girl you didn't know existed?" Tawni asked, screwing up her face, looking confused. "Is that what you mean?"

"Yes," Sonny replied, pointing excitedly. "I have never heard her name before, or even seen her face, but low and behold; she is here this morning!"

"Are you sure?" Tawni asked, shaking her head. "I mean you might've heard someone mention her, or you might have casually checked out a picture of her on The Falls casting wall or something without realizing it. It's amazing what the mind can do…according to Zora's psychology textbook."

"Okay, how do you know all this?" Sonny asked, her theory slowly looking like a desperate attempt for some attention. "And I swear down, I have never heard her name mentioned or seen her picture. How could I have dreamt about this girl Tawni?"

"Wow, it's like you made her up. You're like that guy, what's his name? The guy that created the earth and everything in it?" She asked, and the worrying thing? She genuinely looked confused.

"God?"

"Yeah that's him!" She said, looking relieved. "I was so tempted to say Morgan Freeman."

"As funny as this is to you, I am freaking out!" Sonny snapped, her hands still shaking, and every memory of her dream flashing before her eyes. "Am I gifted? Or…I don't even have an alternative option!"

"Well, who was she in the dream?" Tawni asked, and the intelligence involved in the conversation was really taking its toll on her. "The textbook told me that your dreams are supposed to mean something. Who was this girl to you? Maybe there's a reason you thought her up."

"I don't know," Sonny lied. "I just remember her face and her name. I can't remember what she was doing there." She didn't want to reveal that as an adult, this girl had made her fairly miserable when she agreed to be Chad Dylan Cooper's wife. Just acknowledging it again made Sonny feel a little sick.

"I guess we'll just have to wait and see then, won't we?" She shrugged her shoulders. Yeah, that was the only option. Why did it scare Sonny so much?

Sonny was able to introduce Tawni to her literal brainchild a few minutes later, when she and Chad waltzed into the prop house, Evie looking as innocent as she did in Sonny's dream. Everything about the girl was so beautiful, and she could tell that Chad had been left surprised by her appearance in his life. His eyes lit up a little more, and his cheeks were a little redder.

"I just thought I'd introduce you all to the future biggest star on the planet," Chad smirked, bringing forward Evie, who echoed the same nervousness Sonny did on her first day. "She got the best break out of her and Sonny."

"Oh please," Sonny frowned, but she was surprised when a meeker voice joined in, and looked over to see Evie mimicking her expression. "Why are you making fun of your big break?"

"Chad, it's not that great a show," she laughed, shaking her head.

"Wow, do you know who you're talking to?" He asked her, and he suddenly sounded very protective; wow, Sonny hadn't seen anyone get this riled up about their own TV show. "You are acting with a man that the-"

"I'm sure some prestigious newspaper called you a Greek God or something," she replied, "But I'm going to attempt to get on with our contemporaries. So Random is just as good a show as The Falls."

"What?" Both Sonny and Chad asked with surprise. Tawni stood back, trying not to laugh at the whole thing. Wow, this Evie girl was somewhat familiar.

"What? A star of The Falls can't be nice?" She asked, shrugging her shoulders. "Chad, we should get filming. You never know, I just might surprise you again."

"You know, I can't – I'm so – I don't even know what to say, you're so-"

"Oh, this is going to be fun," Evie laughed, grabbing his hand. Sonny watched her and tried not to say anything, but she felt like someone had punched her in the gut. She had to remind herself that their relationship wasn't meant to be, otherwise she might be a little jealous.

"Wow," Tawni giggled, sitting down on the sofa next to Sonny, who found herself winded after everything she had just witnessed.

"I know," she replied. "I'm freaking out."

"It's weird," she remarked, "Evie sort of reminds me of you."

"She does?"

"Yeah, she's so nice and sweet and she put Cooper in his place," she remarked, and then she smiled. "It's like you imagined yourself a perfect duplicate of yourself. Clearly you guys were supposed to meet."

Something was wrong here.

Sonny wasn't going to hang around the Mackenzie Falls set to see just how Evie and Chad interacted. She certainly wasn't going to ensure that she didn't tell anyone. She certainly wasn't going to hide behind various props to make sure no one saw her. But she did. She did hang around the Mackenzie Falls set to see how Evie and Chad interacted, she didn't tell anyone, and she almost knocked over a cardboard cut out of Mackenzie keeping herself hidden from everyone. It was pathetic, but she had become weirdly superstitious since it turned out she could predict human beings.

"Mackenzie, you're the one," Evie told Chad, with the same overdramatic tone and exaggerated expression on her face that was protocol for the entire cast.

"Oh Lauren, I don't think I could love anyone as much as I love you," he told her intensely, holding her cheeks with his hands, his eyes lighting up. It had to be acting; he did not seriously just blush when he touched her face. She didn't smile when he looked into her eyes. There couldn't be an attraction.

"But what about-" she began, but Chad's fingers brushed over her rosy lips.

"I don't love her anymore," he told her, looking to the midnight sky, Evie's hair glittering in the superficial moonlight. "She broke my heart Lauren, but I've learned to love again. You are the light at the end of the tunnel. You are the angel that's brought me back to life."

"Oh Mackenzie," she breathed, putting her arms around him, their lips touching. He wrapped his arms around her intensely, like he did with Sonny, and proceeded to tangle his fingers in her hair, his eyes closed, and allowing himself to enjoy the moment.

"Cut!" The director yelled, and Sonny felt chills when she saw the disappointment on Chad's face when he grudgingly pulled himself away from Evie. "Wow, beautiful."

There was a break after that, and Sonny somehow moved the cardboard cut out of Chad over to the snacks table, where Evie and Chad were resting after their scene. As usual he had picked out the best food for himself, and she was nibbling on some pizza. They didn't get pizza in the prop house. It was so unfair, because it wasn't like they didn't work as hard or anything – whoa, one battle at a time Sonny.

"Did I tell you that I've been offered the part of Biff Loman in a play in New York?" Chad asked her, trying to dazzle her with his eyes. "It's a serious part and I can finally be serious."

"I love Death of a Salesman!" She exclaimed. "That sounds so awesome. When is it?"

"It'll be next Tuesday," he replied.

"I would seriously consider going," she nodded her head. There was something strange about him; he actually looked excited when she said that.

"Are you in love with me yet?" Chad asked her smugly, like he asked every girl after they kissed. "I'm surprised you're still on your feet, I mean it was so unexpected and all."

"Meh, it was okay," she shrugged her shoulders, much like Sonny would've done if he'd asked her. Chad looked a little embarrassed, but managed to shrug it off, looking deep into her eyes. "Are you trying to hypnotize me or something? Because it won't work."

"It's okay to admit I'm pretty," he told her, and she scoffed. "Man, am I losing my mojo today? No one seems to be blown away by me today, I should've used that new conditioner; I knew the old one was far too used to my style to take people's breaths away."

"Why would your mojo have disappeared?" She asked him, looking at him seriously, "I know I've never met you before, but from what I've heard, you don't normally have to try this hard."

"Okay, you wanna know the truth? I mean the God's honest truth?" He asked her, and he looked just as serious as she did. It was a look that Sonny didn't see often, and it disturbed her. She nodded her head. "Someone said no to me today, I mean I put myself out there and I got a 'no'. It's so lame that I'm even telling you, because I am a heartthrob and it doesn't ever happen to me. Don't you dare be thinking it happens to me a lot."

"So you got rejected?" She asked him, and he was forced to nod his head. "Wow, someone knocked you back. That's got to hurt your ego a little, trust me, I've been there."

"It's fine though, I don't even need her," he insisted, shrugging his shoulders. "In case you people did not know it; Chad Dylan Cooper will love again."

"Well if you ever need anyone to talk to," Evie smiled. Everything about her was so incredibly sweet, how could no one see that she was probably a horrible person underneath? She was just trying to win Chad over so that she could become a regular on The Falls. That was the plan. There could not be someone as nice as Evie in the world, there just couldn't be. People like her just didn't exist. It was only Sonny who stood up to Chad, but in a way that still made him like her. No one else could take that away from them.

Just as she was saying that, she punched the cardboard cut out without thinking, and before she knew it, she had fallen onto the floor right in front of Chad and Evie. Oh great, she thought. She must have looked so normal hiding behind the props.

"I was just – I was playing, and-"

"Whatever, I'm going to get some water," Chad said, walking away from her. He didn't even look at her, and she felt like something had pierced her heart. He didn't even look like he wanted to see her. He didn't even look hopeful that she might have changed her mind. She hadn't, and even though something inside ached when she reinforced her decision, she had to stick to it.

"Please Chad, can we talk about this?" She asked him desperately, trying to ignore Evie standing in the background, trying to stay out of it.

"You know what? We can't," he replied, pointing his finger at her. "I don't want to. Unless you've come to say you've changed your mind, I do not want to talk. Have you changed your mind?" She looked down towards the ground, her chestnut hair falling over her eyes. She was grateful; she didn't like to see him upset. "Well then, I guess I have nothing to say to you."

"I don't want us to just stop talking forever," she protested, trying not to cry. "I didn't think that-"

"No, you didn't think," he snapped. "This is what happens when people don't think. Just don't talk to me right now, please?" With that, he stormed off, leaving Sonny devastated and humiliated.

"Just give him a little bit of time," Evie insisted. Sonny badly wanted to snap at her, because it was none of this girl's business, but she couldn't. She looked so sympathetic, and she put her hand on Sonny's shoulder. "He's been really weird all day. He's been trying to hold it in, but he eventually had to lose his shit at some point."

"I didn't know what I was doing," she explained, shrugging her shoulders. "We kissed, and it was amazing, but we can't be together, you know? Our shows have so much bad blood and it would just create so many problems, and I've already had a hard time fitting in with the Randoms."

"So, you don't like him?" She asked, and it sounded so final. Did Sonny like Chad? "Because it shouldn't matter what anyone else thinks if you genuinely like the guy. You have to be a little vulnerable sometimes when it comes to guys. It's not always easy to like someone."

"Do you like him?" Sonny shot back, her dream flashing before her eyes. She'd almost forgotten why she was so wary of Evie. The blonde bit her lip and looked down on the ground.

"I wouldn't do anything," she insisted, nodding her head defiantly. "I don't want to get in the middle of something so big. You guys clearly have history."

"Why not?" Sonny asked her, shrugging her shoulders. "It's not like I like him."

****

"I have to get there on time!" Sonny screamed to the cab driver, the lights shining down on her like blinding stars. They were surrounded by skyscrapers and other yellow cabs, horns conducting their own musical, but the traffic wasn't moving any faster.

"I am going as fast as I can!" The cab driver snapped, "I can't move or I will kill someone. Do you want my ass to go to jail so you can go to some play?"

"Will you move it?" Tawni asked, her blonde hair waving about as she scrambled to her seat impatiently. "She has to go and tell someone she loves them! You have to move!"

"This is not When Harry Met Freaking Sally you know!" He snapped, pounding on his horn again. He didn't care; he looked at her the same way Sonny might look at a TV show she wasn't really paying attention to. It was at that moment when she put a $50 note into the driver's hand and sighed heavily.

"We'll walk, you said it isn't far," she insisted, grabbing Tawni's hand. She looked mortified as she stepped out of the cab in stiletto heels, looking at the immense amount of pavement she was going to have to conquer.

"We're walking? I did not come all the way from LA to walk here!" She snapped, but Sonny ignored her, her heart pounding. She only had one more chance, otherwise she had lost forever. His eyes had lost their sparkle for her, and it seemed that she was being replaced by the beautiful blonde girl that shouldn't have been there in the first place. Sonny had to tell him that she loved him. She just had to. She had to be there before Evie. She had to be there first, have him see her first. Otherwise she had lost him forever.

"We're almost here," she insisted, running towards the theatre. She tried to ignore Tawni's whining when she saw the steps she would have to run up. They had only minutes, because the show was about to finish. Sonny wanted to see the whole show, but the plane had been delayed, and everything told her that she wouldn't be able to make it.

"This better result in a heart wrenching romantic moment that makes me cry!" Tawni snapped, as she winced running up the stairs. They seemed endless to Sonny. It seemed like he was a thousand miles away, and not just two minutes away.

She heard the cheering the moment she stepped into the theatre, and ran as fast as she could. Tawni promised to catch up. She pushed her way through the double doors that almost crushed her, and ran down towards the stage. The show was receiving a standing ovation, and Sonny wanted to be down the front where he could see her. He had to see her. He had to know that she cared.

When Sonny eventually got to the stage, her hope was met with a thousand daggers stabbing at every inch of her body. There was Evie Handler with her arms around him.

Suddenly everything grew quiet, and she could only hear the sound of their lips as they kissed, and the sound of relief in both their voices. He looked at her adoringly, his arms around her tightly, holding her close to him. She smiled and nestled into his chest, kissing his neck softly.

"You made it," he smirked, "You actually made it!"

"I told you I was considering it," she smiled, kissing him softly.

"Evie, you're it," he told her, as if it had just hit him. "I love you. You're the only one I want standing next to me. You have to be the one."

****

"NO!" Sonny sat up straight, feeling hot tears streaming down her cheeks. She looked around her to see that she was alone in her room. She had been dreaming again? It felt so real. She could've sworn that she had been breathing in the crisp New York air, and she still felt out of breath. She still felt like the hot lights from the theatre were beaming down onto her.

No matter how much she closed her eyes and tried to shake it off, Sonny could still see the image of Chad kissing Evie. Why was she so obsessed with this? Why had it taken over her subconscious? It all felt so real; she was sure that she had just witnessed them kissing, and wondered if they were in her room now.

She thought about it as she drove to work. She wondered if someone was trying to tell her something. It was astounding the way she felt. She felt an immense pain in her gut when she thought about it. She felt her heart race when she even considered the possibility.

"You're insane," she protested to herself. "This is what happens when you casually decide to take the piss and read your Mom's copies of Mills & Boon. You don't like him. You don't."

"What if you do?" She heard herself ask. Oh God, now she had another personality.

"You don't," she protested, parking the car. "It would never work. He's high maintenance, and you're an awesome person. No, you don't belong together. There's no such thing. No. No. No."

And then she witnessed Evie and Chad kissing against his car. His arms were wrapped around her, and she was playing with his hair.

Yes. Yes. Yes.


	3. Chapter 3

Sonny didn't know what to think. She just stood there awkwardly observing the boy she thought liked her making out with the girl that allegedly didn't want to get in the middle of something so big. Her heart was pounding, and she was surprised by how much it hurt to watch. They kissed for several more minutes, before realising she was standing there, holding her car keys and trying not to scream at them.

"Sonny, I didn't – we –" Evie began, biting her lip nervously, her cheeks reddening.

"I'm so glad that you're getting over it," she told Chad dismissively, refusing to let the both of them see her upset. She turned to look at Evie; "So glad to see that I didn't stop you."

"I thought you didn't like me," Chad called, and she couldn't help but clench her fists.

"I'm fine," she shrugged her shoulders, walking away. "Don't worry about me."

"Oh you're fine all right," Tawni shook her head when Sonny told her the story, her blood boiling at the mere memory of the two of them kissing. It just wasn't a nice thing to do; he had only just met the girl after professing his attraction to Sonny, and Evie had insisted she didn't want to get involved in anything. It was bad manners! It wasn't because Sonny was a tad hung up on Chad. No, it was ridiculous. She was fine; she was just upset that he had put her through all that stress just to go and kiss someone else the very next day.

"I am, it's just rude," she insisted, but she sounded a little crazy saying it.

"You're as fine about this as I am about brown eyeliner," she replied, sneering, and Sonny looked at her strangely. "I'm sorry, but what does brown go with? It's the colour of poop!"

"I thought I had hurt him Tawni!" She snapped, shaking her head. "I was so worried that I had broken his stupid heart and it turns out that he's perfectly fine."

"Okay, I don't think you updated me on the whole thing," she said, sitting down next to her reluctantly. "I can afford to be selfless for three minutes? Tell me what's happening here."

Oh yeah, she hadn't told anyone about that. Great, why did she have to open her big fat mouth to Tawni? She rolled her eyes and started from the beginning, omitting the part about the dream, because she didn't want her to think that the dream meant anything. The dream made everything seem more serious than it really was. The dream suggested that Sonny lost her soulmate when she lost Chad to Evie. That wasn't the case.

"Wow," Tawni gasped. "You're not the only one who's like Morgan Freeman – I mean God!"

"What?" Sonny asked. She longed for the day when she would be able to understand what Tawni said to her and the day she wouldn't find herself asking questions.

"I totally saw this coming," she replied, looking proud of herself. "I mean he totally flirts with you all the time, or he did, and you were both so sweet at the prom, and you always had this shiny look-"

"I don't like him," she said, and she felt like it was the only thing she had been saying for the past day. It seemed to be the only statement she made. Why did everyone think that she liked him? You know who Sonny had liked? She'd liked James, and even though she would never dare admit it to anyone; she had sort of liked it when she and Hayden were forced to kiss that time at the basketball game, but she hadn't seen him lately.

"You don't like him?" Tawni asked, and she looked disappointed. "Darn it Sonny! Why couldn't you just let me be psychic? I almost had a sixth sense there!"

"I'm sorry, but I will not lie," she shook her head defiantly. "You know what they can do? They can just go ahead and kiss all they want. I don't care. If he's trying to get a reaction from me, I don't care. He's not the only one who can make out with people."

"Great, thanks for clarifying that," Sonny turned around and stared in horror when she saw Chad standing in the doorway, looking annoyed, and slightly disappointed. It was something in his eyes; she could always tell when he was feeling anything because of his eyes. "I came to see if you were okay, thanks for clearing it up."

"Yeah I am fine," she insisted, putting her hands on her hips. "Hey, I'm just glad you don't like me half as much as you said you did. I'm glad it wasn't hard to get over me."

"You know what –"

"No, screw it," Sonny said, interrupting him. "We don't care about each other in that way. It's an awesome feeling."

"Fine," he shrugged his shoulders, walking away. She didn't want him to walk away; she wanted him to fight and insist that she was lying to him, and to herself. It was something she would never admit though, because she didn't care. The dream didn't mean anything. He didn't mean anything to her. Not like that.

They avoided each other for days. Sonny didn't leave the prop house unless she had to rehearse a sketch and Chad didn't make his usual torment trips to Chuckle City. She heard about him and Evie though. It was all anyone on The Falls could talk about. They couldn't believe how quickly Chad had fallen for his new guest star. They spent every minute together, and apparently they had kissed on several occasions. He seemed to really like her, and she seemed head over heels for him. The tabloids were having a field day and had completely forgotten about the fiery brunette who was allegedly his soulmate.

"I don't have to be with him," she had told Sonny the day before, visiting her from the set, probably behind Chad's back. Her blonde hair was curled and her lips were red, but the lipstick had faded a little and was a little messed to the side of her mouth. "If you –"

"But I don't," Sonny replied. "Why do you care so much Evie? I sure don't."

"I just don't want to be the rebound girl," she replied. "If you feel anything, then I think you should go for it, because I reckon he would too."

"He likes you," she smiled, but it proved to be extremely difficult, considering she wanted to punch the girl. "I think you should go get him. Please, stop worrying about me." She nodded her head and disappeared. The next day they appeared in the newspapers kissing again and Chad declaring that she was his new girlfriend.

****

"Evie's pregnant?" Sonny asked surprisingly, sitting in the restaurant looking at Chad and his wife glowing over her news. Suddenly everything became warmer, and it dawned on the brunette as she sat at the next table; he would never leave her.

"Yeah, we just found out last week," she smiled. "I am feeling so happy lately, honestly, I would so love you to come over and hang out. Wouldn't that be so much fun?"

"So much fun," Sonny lied, finding it painful to smile. "Congratulations, I am so happy for you!"

She couldn't believe it. She thought that in the end Chad would come back to her. She didn't think that Evie was the girl he would spend forever with. She forced herself to believe it and acknowledge it, but she thought that one day he would realise that she had been lying all along. She did like him. In fact, she would go as far to say as she loved him. She'd just been scared back then; she'd been scared of him leaving her hurt. She didn't realise that she was hurting herself all along.

"Thank you," Evie gushed, nuzzling into Chad, who kissed her softly. "He is so happy. You know what we were thinking? We should totally set you up with one of our friends! Weren't we thinking that sweetie?"

"Absolutely," Chad replied, and it hurt Sonny when he didn't even look fazed. He held Evie's hand and smiled casually, the love in his eyes only appearing when he looked at his wife. He was over Sonny. He had always been over Sonny. "Gotta say though, they are not half as pretty as me."

"He just had to mention something about himself in the conversation," Evie rolled her eyes, looking at him and smiling teasingly, "Didn't you?"

"What? I'm just warning her," he insisted, smirking, and then he looked at Evie again. "I love teasing you. Honestly, you would not believe how easy it is to wind Evie up."

"Haha you're so hilarious," she replied sarcastically, and then she looked to Sonny. "How do you feel about Russian people?"

"Russian people?" Sonny asked. Truthfully she wasn't paying attention to the conversation, but the gut wrenching pain that was dominating her thoughts. It hurt to watch them, because it was what she wanted; she had always wanted to be in Evie's shoes.

"Well he's not Russian," she replied. "But he has sympathies for communism. He is so sweet though, and take no notice of my silly husband, he is gorgeous."

"He's gorgeous is he?" Chad asked, and Sonny giggled politely. Wow, it was actually the most painful thing to observe, so she downed the glass of wine she had been sipping. It was the only way she would be able to endure the both of them being so sickeningly in love.

"Surprisingly, I am not a big fan of communism," Sonny replied, shrugging her shoulders. "I just don't have time to go out with anyone. I'm so busy and stuff. Thanks anyway."

"Yeah, I guess," Evie replied, nodding her head. "We just don't want you being lonely or anything. You are one of my good friends you know Sonny. Now, if you two will excuse me, I need to go freshen up."

It was awkward for a few minutes, with Sonny realising that she was finally alone with Chad. It was pathetic, but she was able to pretend that it meant more than it actually did. He looked alone when she left him, and he watched her go, and watched her every move until she disappeared into the bathroom. His eyes still looked dazzled by her, even when she was gone.

"You two seem really happy," Sonny began. She didn't know what else to say. Professing her secret love for him didn't seem appropriate. The knowledge that it would have to remain a secret forever forced her to knock back another glass of wine.

"Yeah, we are," he nodded. "It's weird. I don't think about myself half as much as I should when she's around. Did you know she's actually prettier than me? I didn't think such a person existed."

"So nice to see that you're just as modest," she joked.

"It's weird, it all happened so fast," he replied, smiling a little. "People kept on telling me that it wouldn't last and here I am, still in love with her. It just didn't spring out that people could meet their soulmates as teenagers, you know?"

"You fell for her pretty fast, didn't you?" Sonny asked him, trying to shield her jealousy. It was like a child looking through glass at the toy they couldn't have.

"Yeah, I think it was the play that sealed the deal though," he nodded. "I was stupid, but after everything that happened with you, and how quickly she came into the picture, I decided that the person who I saw at the play first was 'the one'. It was such an idiotic thing to do, but I didn't know who I wanted. And then she came. That's how I knew. That's how I knew she was the girl I was going to marry."

"You fell in love with Evie that night?" She asked him, trying to disguise how sick she felt. She'd been there that night, and she'd left things after spotting them kissing. Was she the one who made a mistake? Should she had left that night? Was that one decision the reason she was alone?

"Maybe," he shrugged his shoulders, unaware of the crippling impact it was having on Sonny. "But maybe I always loved her and that gesture just told me that I had something going here."

"Do you think things might have been different if I had been the first one you saw?" She asked, pleading for the answer to be 'no'. She didn't want to fact the fact that she had ruined her life by just giving up so easily. She didn't want to admit that it was her own fault she was alone.

"I don't know," he said, but then he laughed. "Sonny, let's face it, we were never meant to be. You don't love me, and I don't love you. It was always meant to be Evie. You don't have to be sorry for anything; because we never really had anything, did we? It wasn't really love."

****

"BUT I DO LOVE YOU!" Sonny yelled out loud, and then she realised it. It had all been just another dream, and she had actually fallen asleep in the prop house. The rest of the Randoms just about leaped out of their seats, and Sonny felt her face set on fire.

"Holy crap I think I might have pooped my pants!" Grady yelled, his eyes wide with terror. Nico slowly moved away from him as Grady felt intensely to see if there was any truth in his statement. "No, false alarm, but dude, seriously, what the hell?!"

"I love him!" Sonny gasped, covering her mouth. It hit her the way a bucket of water would hit someone in the face. It was unpleasant, but it definitely woke you up. She was in love with Chad Dylan Cooper, and every dream had been drying to tell her that.

"I'm sorry, you love who?" Tawni asked, and Sonny just looked at her, hoping that somehow her brain would transport the knowledge from her eyes. She didn't want to have to say it in front of everyone, because then it would be a problem. Chad had to know before the majority of the studio. He had to know immediately. "Oh my God! I knew it! I am just like that God guy; all knowing."

"How did you know?" Sonny asked; refusing to believe it was obvious. She was a smart girl; if this had been an easy one to solve, then she would have solved it without the help of her unconscious mind.

"Please, I may not know about math or anything like that, but I know love," she replied, rolling her eyes, as if it was ridiculous that Sonny would doubt her.

"It wasn't an easy thing to see, I – you know what? There's no time!" Sonny protested, standing up straight. "He is in New York right now and I need to be too. It only takes five hours on plane to get there, right?"

"His play ends in seven hours; do you not think that maybe this could wait?" Tawni asked her.

"It would be so awesome if I knew what on earth was going on," Nico remarked, he and Grady looking very confused.

"No, because SHE is going to get there before me and he is going to fall in love with her," she replied, grabbing her purse. "I need to go now; otherwise he is never going to know how I feel."

"Okay let's go," Tawni said, grabbing her coat and purse. Sonny looked at her surprisingly, "I need to come with you Sonny to make sure you get there alive and stuff. Plus, it wouldn't hurt my ego to know that not only am I pretty, but I am also all knowing."

They travelled to the nearest airport, and were then told that the flight to New York had been delayed. Sonny looked at her watch, and saw that she would be lucky if she got there in eight hours. She didn't want to end up like the girl she was in the dream. She knew that if she didn't get there first, that he would fall in love with Evie and refuse to talk to her about anything. She only had hours left to ensure that the past didn't repeat itself. She wasn't entirely sure of what the hell was going on, but she didn't want to risk anything.

"I just don't know why you got to see into your future," Tawni said, while they sat in the waiting room. Sonny didn't know either, but she did know that watching the other planes take off was making her incredibly jealous. "I mean, why don't I have that opportunity? Is it because I forgot about God, because it is not so easy to remember that when you're –"

"I'm sure that you'll get the same opportunity," Sonny interrupted before she went insane. She loved Tawni to pieces, but sometimes enough was enough. "I can't believe I'm missing out on my opportunity. Why are flights delayed tonight of all nights? I mean seriously? He's going to fall in love with Evie and there is absolutely nothing I can do about it!"

"No, there is something we can do," Tawni insisted, standing up on her chair. "IS THERE ANYONE HERE WITH A PRIVATE JET GOING TO MANHATTAN? THERE'S FIVE THOUSAND DOLLARS IN IT IF YOU ARE!"

"I'm going to New York!" A man yelled, stepping forward. "I was just about to take off there."

"Well that's no good to us," Tawni replied, shaking her head. "We want to go to Manhattan –"

"Thank you so much!" Sonny gasped delightedly, grabbing Tawni's hand. "Manhattan is in New York Tawni! Let's go!"

"I swear, you never actually think you're going to get this lucky," she smiled, as she stepped onto the plane. "I'm just the luckiest person in the world to be around, seriously."

It was the longest five hours of her life. She knew that she would be missing his performance, because his show would be starting when she had only been in the air for a short amount of time. She thought of everything; she thought of the dreams and whether it really was a sign of the future. Sonny Monroe didn't believe that she would be so miserable without Chad in her life. She didn't think that he was the one for her, but over the last few days, everything had been pointing towards fighting for him.

"Are you girls going to be alright?" The pilot asked when they walked out of the airport and into the bright lights of New York. It was dark and the stars were twinkling all around them.

"Sure Fred, you win at life, thank you so much," Tawni smiled, handing him a cheque. "And thank you for those math tips. I'm so passing my next final."

She was about to step into a yellow cab, when Sonny held her back. She recognised the driver from her dream, and she just knew that it would be too late if she drove with him. He would go a route that he thought was shorter, but was in fact longer. She had fifteen minutes to spare until Chad kissed Evie. She couldn't risk it. She had to be early, for the sake of her love life.

"What are you –"

"We'll be late if we drive with him, trust me," she insisted, and Tawni nodded. Sonny hadn't explained the basis of her dream, but Tawni knew not to mess with her. They allowed the old woman behind them to get into the cab, and jumped into the next one.

"There's time Sonny," she assured her friend, who tapped frantically on her seat. It all looked so familiar, down to the advertisements beaming off of billboards. She had seen this before, and it disturbed her. What if it had already been decided? Was she wasting her time trying to change it? Was she absolutely insane? Was there a reason she was even here? Or was the dream just a dream? Had she seen Evie before? It was so confusing.

"Here's fifty bucks, thanks," Sonny said quickly, throwing the money into the driver's hand, before running towards the steps. She was five minutes early. She had five minutes to tell him how she felt. She grabbed Tawni's hand and raced up the steps, listening to Tawni complain about the shoes she was wearing and about how she definitely had been prepared.

"Go on ahead, I don't think I can do it," she insisted, so Sonny ran. She forgot what a mess her hair was, and what a mess her face probably was and ran through the entrance, her footsteps echoing all over the reception area. It looked the exact same in her dream, down to the gold banisters leading upstairs. She looked to see the double doors in front of her, the ones that would lead her to Chad.

She ran through them, into the applauding crowds. They hadn't stood up yet, so it was blatantly obvious that someone was running down to the front of the stage. She didn't look to the stage to see if he was there, and instead just ran. She didn't want to waste another second. She had to be first. She just had to have been there before Evie. She couldn't have been there afterwards. She just couldn't have been.

Sonny ran to thee front, and looked up at the stage. She expected to see Chad standing there basking in all the glory he was receiving after playing such a risky role. She expected to see him smiling smugly, realising his potential in the acting world.

She didn't expect him to be standing there kissing Evie Handler, like she had dreamt it. But he was.

"No," she shook her head defiantly, watching their lips touch, and their arms tightly around the other. Chad wasn't even looking out into the audience and was instead looking into Evie's eyes and playing with a strand of her blonde hair. "It can't be. I was on time. I was on time!"

No one heard her. She was silent in the crowd and merely just another face when Chad eventually did scan his eyes across the room. He didn't see her. He didn't seem to see anyone the way he was seeing Evie. His hand was entwined with hers, and he was smiling at his co-stars.

It was really too late. She didn't want to have to admit it, but she had missed her chance. In her dream, he looked the exact same when she ran into the theatre, and she was well aware of how that turned out. What did she do wrong? She had been on time! She had realised the truth and she had realised her own feelings on time! Why was it too late for her? Why was Evie still there before her? It was just not fair! She knew that people couldn't always get what they wanted, but she didn't think that the dream was supposed to end this way.

She watched the two of them stand there, and suddenly it all played out like in her dream. She continued standing there until the crowd left the theatre. She allowed herself to be pushed around by the strangers who barely even looked her in the eye. She stared on the stage, waiting to see him again, but h and Evie had disappeared backstage. They wouldn't show their faces again that night. It would be too late for anything. It was too late. It had always been too late.

When everyone had left, she sat in one of the private booths. She turned her phone off, and sat out looking at the empty theatre, wondering what on earth she would do next. She didn't want to talk to anyone, and she was pretty sure that she had never been in pain like this before. Everything inside her hurt, and just the thought of cracking a smile made her mouth wince. She wondered if there was any chance she could change the outcome of her dream; she didn't want to end up miserable just because she had lost one guy. There would be plenty of other guys. Why was she so devastated?

"Hi," Sonny almost jumped out of her seat when she saw Evie standing at the door. She clenched her fists, but then realised that she'd probably get arrested for throwing her off the balcony. So she squeezed the seat instead and forced her to smile. "I saw you onstage so I thought I'd come and say hi."

"Hi," she replied meekly. She didn't want to give her mortal enemy the satisfaction of knowing that she had won. She was the one who was walking away with the one thing that Sonny wanted in this world...right now anyway.

"I know why you came," she said, sitting down next to Sonny, her blonde hair glimmering under the light. She looked sad, and disappointed, despite being the clear winner. He loved her. What more did she want? "I'm sorry that he didn't see you."

"You're sorry?" She asked, looking confused. "You have him now. He loves you."

"It was the dream, right?" Evie asked, nodding her head. "Did you see it? Did you see what would happen if I showed up before you?"

"Evie, I didn't tell anyone about that dream," Sonny replied, her eyes growing wide with horror. How on earth did she know that? She looked at the girl and edged away slightly, especially when Evie didn't look fazed one little bit by what she had just said. "How did you know about it?"

"That's not the only one you had either," she said. "You've saw the future. I know that you don't know whether what you saw is your future, but I can assure you that it's definitely looking that way."

"Evie, how do you –"

"It's weird, I don't know if I want to tell you," she said, and she sounded so normal. She didn't sound alarmed by what she knew. Was she gifted like Sonny apparently was? Could she see things that other people couldn't? Was she the one who had somehow passed it to Sonny? "Normally I never have to say anything; I just disappear, but then again, you didn't even get the hint when I gave you the dreams."

"What are you talking about?" She asked, desperate for some answers. "Are you psychic or something? Evie, how the hell do you know what I've been dreaming about?"

"Because I'm the one who made you dream it," she replied, smirking. "Okay, I guess I'm just going to have to come out with it, and you're going to think I'm insane."

"You're really freaking me out," Sonny replied. She didn't know what to think; she worried that Evie might have a serious mental problem, but she knew too much. A few days before, she would have completely ruled out the supernatural sixth sense aspect, but that was before.

"I'm not really Evie Handler," she replied. "I mean that is an alias I use, but I have another alias as well."

"You need to elaborate a little," she said, trying not to sound freaked out, but her voice was trembling, and she was a little terrified.

"I'm...oh what the hell, my name is Cupid!" She replied, crossing her arms and screwing up her face, waiting for the ridicule. Sonny heard her, and simply nodded her head. She was Cupid? Sonny was actually in the room talking to Cupid? What? Was that even possible? How the hell could it be possible? Cupid existed? Her mind was spinning, and she was pretty sure she was ready to pass out.

"Cupid?" She managed to choke, gripped to her seat. The blonde girl nodded her head and stood up.

"I need you to shut up until I explain," she advised sternly, and Sonny was forced to nod her head. "I know what you're thinking; why the hell am I out when it's not February 14th? My job kinda involves me working all the time. It's not as easy as shooting people with emotional arrows anymore, you've all become widely cynical, so I have to resort to more drastic measures –"

"Drastic measures?"

"This is what I do now," she said, pointing to her physique. "This is Evie Handler; successfully bringing people together since 1832. Evie's job is to prove herself as a threat to another woman."

"You were trying to be a threat towards me?" Sonny asked her. She couldn't believe it; it was all so surreal. She was talking to Cupid who was apparently trying to be a threat. Was she dreaming this time? She seriously hoped she was dreaming, otherwise she was insane.

"Yes, Evie's job is to show women what they're missing," she said. "I wooed over Chad Dylan Cooper to attempt to get you to get your act together and realise you two belong together. First I gave you the dream, but when that didn't work, well Evie did. Don't worry though; not a lot of people realise it through the dreams."

"He's my soulmate?" She demanded in shock, her eyes wide. She was sure that she probably should have been asking a million other questions, but that one stood out.

"Yes," she smiled. "And you're lucky. I don't normally have people meet 'the one' in their teens because of society's attitude and all that crap, but when the man upstairs decided you were going to meet young, I thought that I should act now."

"So God's in on the whole thing?" She asked, beginning to feel very dizzy. "Great, that's just great. I missed out on my chance with Chad and now I'm hallucinating a supernatural reason. Well, no one can say that I don't have an imagination, can they?"

"I thought you might be cynical, so watch this," she forced Sonny to look. All it took was a click of her fingers, and suddenly Sonny was looking at Hayden. She was looking at the Hayden that she had attempted to hook Tawni up with. How on earth was that possible? He looked proud of himself. Was it even a he? Oh God, she really was going insane.

"Good God, you're really not lying, are you?" She gasped, trying not to faint. When Hayden changed back into Evie, Sonny was further convinced that she was seriously witnessing a magical moment.

"This is more comfortable for me," Cupid explained. Yes, Sonny decided that she should just accept that Cupid was really sitting next to her; otherwise she might have a nervous breakdown. "Hayden was created as a threat to Chad Dylan Cooper."

"But Hayden wasn't my date or anything," Sonny protested, but why was she even arguing with Cupid? "I was trying to hook him up with Tawni."

"Yeah, but you secretly liked him," she replied, "Don't even try and deny it. My aliases are supposed to reflect the ideal date a person wants. Hayden was created to reflect exactly what you want in a guy."

"Seriously, why do you do this?"

"Because, you all seem to be living in the notion that your soulmate isn't the one I know he is," she replied. "He's not perfect, love never is. Believing that the perfect guy is going to come along is stupid; your soulmate is the person that you love despite all of the crap. You're going to fight with him, and it's not always going to be perfect, but you'll still love him. It'll work; you're just going to argue and work at it."

"Disney never taught us that," Sonny laughed. "So, is Chad my soulmate?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "You know that despite all his crap and all your crap, that you love him. There's so many things that you're going to love about him. I tried showing him that when I was Hayden, but you two are ridiculously stubborn. I had to be Evie."

"So she's not real?"

"Of course she can be real," Cupid nodded defiantly. "It's called reincarnation and there are a hundred souls who would gladly take me up on the offer. No one better is going to come along Sonny, trust me, I know. Your dream will come true and he will be in love with Evie. Normally, the woman realises the truth and gets with the guy. After that, Evie becomes a distant memory. Like Hayden did."

"If he loves me, then why is he so crazy for you?" She couldn't stop asking questions, because she worried that it would all disappear within seconds.

"It's a little spell I put them under," she replied, looking at her index finger. "Look, fate is all for letting you be alone forever. It is up to you to make the changes to your life. You need to work, especially if you're looking for 'the one'. The big guy upstairs was all for letting you go through life alone, but I had to help you out."

"I love him," she insisted, and she sounded defiant. "I came early, and he still loves you. What did I do wrong?"

"I just wasn't convinced that you believed it enough," she replied, crossing her arms. "I thought that you might chicken out and not tell him the truth."

"But I love him, I really do," she protested.

"I know, I believe you," she replied, nodding her head. "I think you've learned your lesson."

Sonny blinked for just a second, and when she opened her eyes, Evie had disappeared. She was sitting alone in the booth, with no sign of anyone else being in the room. She tried to absorb what had happened, and tried to wonder what would happen next, but she truly had no idea. Had she really just spent a moment with Cupid? It wasn't possible, surely it wasn't possible.

"Sonny?" She looked to see Chad standing there at the door, with a small smile on his face. He was still dressed in the attire his character had to wear. It was strange, but even when he looked exhausted and sweaty, her heart was still racing because they were in the same room. "I saw you onstage; I didn't think you'd even be here."

"Of course I'm here," she said, sighing a little. She remembered herself in his arms and her lips touching his, and knowing it could never happen again made her ache a little. She wasn't used to feeling this way. "Where's Evie?"

"Who?" He asked, looking confused. "Who's Evie?"

"The girl you were with onstage, remember?" She asked. She tried not to allow her face to flush red, and for her heart to beat so fast it burst out of her chest. Chad genuinely looked like he couldn't remember this girl.

"Oh, do you mean my co-star? Her name is Edie," he told her. He seriously couldn't remember her. Chad couldn't remember that Evie Handler had ever existed.

Sonny didn't think. She leaped out of her seat and wrapped her arms around Chad, kissing him passionately on the lips. His arms wrapped around her waist, and he held her tightly. Their lips didn't part for several minutes, and even when they did, Chad held her face for just a second, smirking.

"I thought you didn't like me," he said. "I guess you couldn't resist then? Not a lot of girls can, so don't worry about it."

"Why are you ruining the moment?" She asked him, stroking his cheek softly.

"Because I'm terrified," he confessed, laughing awkwardly.

"Me too," she replied honestly, nodding her head. "Let's just see what happens, right? I have a funny feeling that this might actually work out."

"You think?" He asked her. "What makes you so sure?"

"Just a hunch," she shrugged her shoulders, giggling. He laughed and then kissed her again.


End file.
